12 Sep 2022

It’s Good to be the Queen or King, Financially Speaking

I don’t have any real reason to be sad about Queen Elizabeth’s passing, but I felt a little down about it anyway. I’m a little embarrassed to say that I think I just loved the performances of Claire Foy and Oliva Colman in the Crown and Helen Mirren in The Queen, even if the portrayals could be tough. In any case, I read several articles from our press, but I… Read More

3 May 2021

Biden’s Tax Proposal

President Joe Biden outlined his tax proposals in his address to Congress on April 28th and issued an 18-page fact sheet, which can be found by clicking here. There are many proposals, but here are some of the items of note for individual investors: The top tax bracket would increase to 39.6 percent from 37.0 percent. In 2021, the top bracket began at $523,601 for single individuals and $628,301 for… Read More

22 Mar 2021

Roth 401k Considerations

People frequently ask me if they should use contribute to their ‘regular’ IRA or their Roth IRA. I’m usually wishy-washy in my answer because it depends on a variety of factors, including things that are simply unknowable. Before getting into whether you should or shouldn’t consider the Roth option, let’s review the basics. A ‘regular’ 401k (as people often refer to it when talking to me), is the traditional savings… Read More

6 Aug 2018

More Tax Cuts to Come?

There’s apparently plan floating around Washington that would dramatically change capital gains taxes, in my opinion, for the better. I try to be impartial about political matters (not always successfully, according to some readers), so for now, I want to leave aside the debates about whether the plan only benefits the rich, inappropriately adds to the deficit or whether it should be an act of Congress or a rule change… Read More

23 Apr 2018

Retelling the Story of Concentration Risk

My wife and I were both very fortunate to have inherited some money. When we got married, almost 19 years ago, we found out that about 10 percent of our combined net worth was in General Electric (GE) stock. It was the largest position for both of us, actually. I received the stock when my grandfather died, which was right around the time that Jack Welch took over as the… Read More

16 Apr 2018

$1 Billion Tax Bill

If you’re writing a check to the government tomorrow for tax day, you’re probably not too happy about it.  At least you’re not suffering like John Paulson, the hedge fund manager, who is writing checks to the Fed and state for over $1 billion – on top of the $500 million that he paid in estimates last year. I know, I know: it’s a high class problem that we would… Read More

16 Jan 2018

New Tax Law, New Tax Strategies

One of the key elements of the new tax law is that it nearly doubles the standard deduction from $12,700 to $24,000 for joint filers (for simplicity, I’m not addressing individuals or heads of households, although the same concepts apply). Historically, about 70 percent of people used the standard deduction and that number is expected to jump to 90 percent under the new law. For the 20 percent that will… Read More

18 Dec 2017

The Tax Overhaul Details (In English)

Late Friday evening, Congressional Republicans released the final version of their tax reduction and simplification plan.  Although many elements match the House and Senate versions, there are some differences worth noting. I should point out, though, that the following is a broad summary – I haven’t read all 1,100 pages of the proposed law.  Furthermore, this summary only covers the changes for individual filers, not corporations or partnerships. Lastly, you… Read More

2 Oct 2017

Trump’s Tax Principles

Following the election last November, I outlined what we could reasonably expect from the Trump administration (you can find the article here).  The article may have been a little tough to follow because I was trying to meld what Trump had said on the campaign trail and two proposals floating around the House. At this point, the picture is a little more clear as President Trump and GOP leaders outlined their… Read More

6 Feb 2017

What is a Border Adjustment Tax?

Most of the time, the topics that I choose for Daily Insights are things that I think I know a lot about.  Sometimes, I write about a topic in an effort to learn more about it. That’s the case today: I had never heard of a border adjustment tax until a few weeks ago, wanted to know more and thought I would share what I’ve learned. Some of you undoubtedly… Read More